Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 30,432 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 7.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 417,695 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,432 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $48,223,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Nucor during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Nucor by 60.3% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 303 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 29.1% in the fourth quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 417 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter worth $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Stock Performance

NYSE NUE opened at $121.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.48. Nucor Co. has a 1-year low of $112.25 and a 1-year high of $203.00. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $130.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $137.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.10 billion, a PE ratio of 14.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.58.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.28. Nucor had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 9.85%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.16 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NUE. Argus set a $155.00 target price on shares of Nucor in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley set a $164.00 price objective on Nucor in a research report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group raised Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $156.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Nucor from $150.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nucor presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $164.44.

About Nucor

Nucor Corporation engages in manufacture and sale of steel and steel products. It operates in three segments: steel mills, steel products, and raw materials. The Steel Mills segment produces hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and galvanized sheet steel products; plate steel products; wide-flange beams, beam blanks, and H-piling and sheet piling structural steel products; bar steel products, such as blooms, billets, concrete reinforcing and merchant bars, and engineered special bar quality products; and engages in the steel trading and rebar distribution businesses.